Deutsche Bank sees Iran war to impact EU chemicals long-term

Deutsche Bank says European chemicals companies might see a long-lasting impact from the situation in the Middle East and expects no swift normalisation for the sector

"While we recognise that the situation could change rapidly, for the better or the worse, we view a swift normalisation as improbable," the broker says

DB says it is impossible to assess the net impact of the conflict at this stage, adding that a wide range of outcomes remain possible for now

It expects that the conflict will have relatively long-lasting consequences for European chemicals, both negative with cost and demand headwinds, and positive with reduced oversupply and competitive pressures

DB cuts AkzoNobel AKZO.AS and Givaudan GIVN.S to "hold" from "buy", as it upgrades Wacker Chemie WCHG.DE to "hold" from "sell"

It also raises BASF BASFn.DE, Umicore UMI.BR and Brenntag BNRGn.DE to "buy" from "hold"

Brenntag, BASF, Wacker Chemie and Umicore shares are up between 1.3% and 1.8%, while AkzoNobel and Givaudan remain flat